Detecting counterfeit products

ABSTRACT

In some embodiments an indication of an intended use of a logic device is stored in a register of the logic device, and any further programming of the register is prevented. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/322,677, entitled “Detecting Counterfeit Products” filed onDec. 30, 2005.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The inventions generally relate to detecting counterfeit products.

BACKGROUND

In some cases, a company such as Intel Corporation makes components (forexample, computer chips) that are sold individually as well as includedon board level and/or system level products that incorporate one or moreof the components that the company sells individually. In such cases thecomponents are sometimes diverted from legitimate customer system designimplementations, through the “open market”, to illicit counterfeitingoperations that counterfeit proprietary and trademark branded systemand/or board-level designs of that company. Therefore, a need has arisento separate and distinguish components sold and shipped to legitimateOEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) from components built for use onbranded company systems intended for the company branded or companyproprietary boards and/or systems.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The inventions will be understood more fully from the detaileddescription given below and from the accompanying drawings of someembodiments of the inventions which, however, should not be taken tolimit the inventions to the specific embodiments described, but are forexplanation and understanding only.

FIG. 1 illustrates sorting of logic devices according to someembodiments of the inventions.

FIG. 2 illustrates sorting of logic devices according to someembodiments of the inventions.

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram according to some embodiments of theinventions.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart according to some embodiments of theinventions.

FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart according to some embodiments of theinventions.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Some embodiments of the inventions relate to detecting counterfeitproducts.

In some embodiments an indication of an intended use of a logic deviceis stored in a register of the logic device, and any further programmingof the register is prevented.

In some embodiments a logic device includes a register indicating anintended use of the logic device.

In some embodiments an indication of an intended use of a logic deviceis read from a register of the logic device. A determination is madewhether the logic device is included in a counterfeit product inresponse to the read indication.

In some embodiments a programming circuit stores in a register of alogic device an indication of an intended use of the logic device andprevents any further programming of the register.

One way to attempt to detect counterfeit board and/or system levelproducts is to incorporate an item in the Bill of Materials (BOM) thatis only available to licensed manufacturers of the branded and/ortrademarked product. This item incorporated into the BOM can incorporatea proprietary security technology that is not readily available on theopen market. Special equipment could be used to detect the presence orabsence of the security technology feature. However, distribution of thespecial detection equipment is expensive, and the security technologycan become compromised when the wrong people gain custody of the specialdetectors. The detectors may also be expensive or time consuming to use,thus limiting the effectiveness of the security technology. Manycounterfeit products might escape detection in this type of solutionsince too few people have access to and know how to use the detectionequipment.

One alternative is for a company (for example, Intel Corporation) to usea logic device only on branded boards (or systems) of that company andnever allow open market access to that specific logic device. In thismodel, the logic device of the company becomes proprietary securitytechnology. No additional detection equipment is necessary beyond, forexample, a small web-based identification tool available on the internetthat is a tool authenticating the legitimacy of the company branded orproprietary design. Only legitimate (that is, internal and/or companybranded) system designs would have access to this logic device andpermit the appropriate hardware-software “handshake”. However, in thiscase some flexibility is missing since the company would not be able toprovide this logic device for sale (for example, on the “open market”)without the entire branded system and/or board.

According to some embodiments a logic device on a board-level product isinterrogated to determine if that board-level product is counterfeit orif the board-level product was manufactured by a trademark protectedbrand owner or a licensed subcontractor of the trademark protected brandowner (for example, using software). According to some embodimentsmultiple brand owners can use common logic devices and still distinguishtrademark branded board-level products of similar or identical functionfrom one another.

According to some embodiments a logic device includes a software visibleregister of one or more bits in length implemented, for example, using aone-time programmable circuit.

According to some embodiments a manufacturing and distribution protocolprograms a unique pattern into a software visible register of a logicdevice for each trademark protected brand owner and insures that eachbrand owner has control over the distribution of the logic device aftertheir pattern is written into the register of the logic device.

According to some embodiments a manufacturer offers logic devices ofidentical functionality and performance to more than one customer. Thelogic devices include a feature where a small static and stand-alonesoftware program can in-situ distinguish logic devices shipped to onecustomer from logic devices shipped to anyone else. It is possible todistinguish logic devices using a software visible serial number (forexample, an Ethernet device MAC address), but when using serial numbersthe software must access a central database and is therefore neitherstand-alone nor static, since the central database may be constantlyupdated.

According to some embodiments the unauthorized use of trademarks and/orbrands on counterfeit board-level products incorporating logic devicesmay be tracked, prohibited, and/or limited. According to someembodiments, tamper-resistant software auditing tools may be used thathelp detect and deter counterfeit products at all links in there-distribution chain of sale.

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram 100 representing sorting of apopulation 102 of identical logic devices. Some of the population 102 ofidentical logic devices are sorted into a group of branded board-levelproducts 104 that are intended by the manufacturer of the logic devicesto be included in branded board-level products (for example, with abrand of that manufacturer and/or with the brand of an approvedsub-contractor). The rest of the population 102 of identical logicdevices are sorted into a group of counterfeit board-level products 106(for example, that are intended by the manufacturer of the logic devicesto be sold individually on the open market). Available software cannotgenerally distinguish between authentic logic devices that are intendedby the manufacturer to be in branded board-level products from logicdevices that are not intended by the manufacturer to be in brandedboard-level products (that is, “counterfeit board-level products”)without being expensive and less accurate (for example, using forensicanalysis).

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram 200 representing sorting of logicdevices according to some embodiments. According to some embodiments,populations of logic devices are segregated by a value in a register inthe logic devices (for example, a brand protection register). In FIG. 2,population 202 of logic devices include devices that have one value in aspecial register such as a brand protection register (value “0” in FIG.2), and population 204 of logic devices include a different value intheir special register such as a brand protection register (value “1” inFIG. 2). Population 202 and population 204 of logic devices aredistinguished by software between authentic branded board-level products206 (for example, internal use only and/or controlled distributionproducts) and counterfeit board-level products 208 (for example, openmarket use and/or open distribution products). The software candistinguish between authentic and counterfeit board-level units byviewing the contents of the special register (for example, brandprotection register) of each of the logic units, making fraud visible tosavvy users.

According to some embodiments FIG. 2 additionally illustrates apopulation 210 of logic devices that includes devices that have no value(or some ambiguous value) in a special register such as a brandprotection register (value “?” in FIG. 2). According to some embodimentssoftware further distinguishes these types of logic devices ascounterfeit products 208 (for example, a 100% counterfeited componentsuch as a logic device that had no origination from the manufacturingcompany factory). In such a scenario the counterfeit component has, forexample, neither a “0” nor a “1” in a register visible to detectionsoftware, and, for example, reads as a “?” (a failure). According tosome embodiments such a failed device can be declared as contrabandalong with the counterfeit board-level products 208 illustrated in FIG.2. According to some embodiments such a failed device can be declared ascontraband and placed into a separate counterfeit category other thanalong with the counterfeit board-level products 208. The brand andconsumer can then be further protected via an appropriate advisorynotification either the same as a notification for counterfeitboard-level products 208 and/or slightly different than a notificationfor counterfeit board-level products 208.

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram 300 which represents programming oflogic devices according to some embodiments. Block diagram 300 includesa logic device 302 being programmed and a programming circuit 304. Logicdevice 302 includes a programmable register 306 (for example, a brandprotection register). According to some embodiments, register 306 may beone bit. According to some embodiments, register 306 may be any numberof bits. According to some embodiments, register 306 may contain anadjustable number of bits.

According to some embodiments programmable register 306 is a one-timeprogrammable register added to logic device 302 that identifies anintended use of the logic device (for example, identifies that the logicdevice is intended to be included in a board-level and/or system-leveldesign of the manufacturer of the logic device and/or of subcontractors,customers, licensees, etc. of the manufacturer of the logic device oridentifies that the logic device is intended to be sold individually).According to some embodiments, programmable circuit 304 is any circuitthat can program a logic device and/or a register. Programmable circuit304 may be implemented in hardware, software, and/or firmware, forexample.

According to some embodiments programmable register 306 is a one-timeprogrammable register. According to some embodiments populations ofotherwise identical logic devices may be segregated and/or distinguished(for example, using software). According to some embodiments, byprogramming distinct patterns into a register such as register 306,silicon that is shipped to factories licensed to manufacture boardsbranded by the company that manufactured the logic device can beidentified by software (for example, software that is freely and widelydistributed to any interested party). A factory that is not licensed tomanufacture boards branded by the company that manufactured the logicdevice will not have access to logic devices programmed with thedistinct pattern required of boards branded by that company. While theunlicensed factory may still be able to procure logic devices (forexample, generic components) and produce a cloned board-level and/orsystem level product (that is a counterfeit that misrepresents the boardand/or system), the counterfeit board (or system) will fail the softwareidentification test (thus identifying the board and/or system ascontraband). According to some embodiments, the same logic device asthat used on the company branded boards and/or systems may be sold onthe open market with different patterns programmed into the register(brand protection register). In this manner, authentic branded boardsmay be validated without any additional add-on security devices.

According to some embodiments, the programmable register (for example,register 306 and/or a brand protection register) is more than one bit inlength. When the register is more than one bit in length, according tosome embodiments each unique binary pattern can be assigned, forexample, to protect a different brand and/or different trademark. Someor all of the different brands and/or different trademarks might beowned by the company that manufactured the logic device (for example,Intel Corporation), and some or all of the different brands and/ordifferent trademarks might be owned by another company or companies (forexample, one or more customers of the company that manufactured thelogic device). Additional bits in the register (for example, register306) and/or an additional register allow a manufacturer to provide theoption to provide brand and/or trademark protection features to some orall of it's customers, for example. Further, the manufacturer can usethis type of brand and/or trademark protection to track material leakinginto the open market and potentially into the hands of board and/orsystem counterfeiting operations. By identifying this type of leakage,the manufacturer and/or it's customers, OEMs, licensees, etc. candetermine the leak of product that may end up in the hands ofcounterfeiting operations.

According to some embodiments, a programming circuit (for example,circuit 304) programs each bit of a register (for example, register 306)during manufacture of a logic device (for example, logic device 302).The step of programming the register can occur anywhere in themanufacturing flow that is convenient to the manufacturer. However,according to some embodiments, once the register is programmed,populations of logic devices are segregated such that there is no mixingof brand protection patterns within each group of logic devices.According to some embodiments, any technique may be used to program theregister as long as the programming cannot be erased or altered.According to some embodiments, a program lockout feature preventsfurther programming of any bits once the logic device leaves themanufacturing factory.

According to some embodiments, the pattern programmed into the brandprotection register must be visible to Operating System (OS) softwarethat uses the logic device. According to some embodiments the registeris addressable as a read-only location using a peripheral input/outputchannel structure of the system in which the logic device is installed.

According to some embodiments, the brand protection register does notimpact or control any other functional features of the logic device. Insuch embodiments the only function of this register is to present theprogrammed pattern (for example, to the OS software).

According to some embodiments, the robustness of the brand protectionregister as a counterfeit detection technique improves with theincreased complexity of the logic device incorporating the register.Highly complex logic devices are difficult to counterfeit andcounterfeit logic devices can be used create an alternate source ofunprogrammed brand protection registers in the open market. For example,a brand protection register is highly robust for logic devices withcomplexity equal to or greater than that of an Ethernet controller (orother embedded controllers).

According to some embodiments, less complex devices that have circuitryexposed to direct copying need to have augmentations to the brandprotection register. For example, according to some embodimentsidentification protocols are implemented that use advanced encryptiontechnology to prevent 100% component forgeries from being used tofalsely identify system and/or board level clones as authentic. Suchadditional measures would not typically currently be necessary forcomponents such as advanced CPUs and Ethernet and wireless enablingcomponent designs, since their circuitry is not typically considered tobe exposed to direct copying.

According to some embodiments, software used by the Operating System(OS) to display the brand protection pattern to the end user must beavailable to the end user from a secure source. Therefore, according tosome embodiments any party wishing to validate the authenticity of aboard-level and/or system-level product incorporating a logic devicewith a brand protection register can procure a fresh copy of thevalidation software from the secure source. This ensures that thesoftware has not been corrupted by other parties attempting tocounterfeit the board-level and/or system-level product.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart 400 according to some embodiments of theinventions. At box 402 a register is loaded with identificationinformation. For example, at box 402 the register is loaded withinformation identifying an expected use of a logic device in which theregister is located (for example, is the logic device intended to beused in a branded board-level product or sold individually on the openmarket). At box 404 further programming of the register is prevented(for example, so that the intended use of the logic device in brandedboard-level product or sale of the logic device the open market may notbe changed). According to some embodiments flowchart 400 may beimplemented, for example, by programming circuit 304 illustrated in FIG.3.

FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart 500 according to some embodiments of theinventions. At box 502 validation software is procured from a securesource (for example, from the web site of the manufacturer of the logicdevice that is to be tested). Then at box 504 a test is performed toensure that the validation software has not been corrupted. If thevalidation software has not been corrupted at 504 then a validation ismade at 506 to validate that the register of the logic device identifiesthat the logic device was intended to be used in a branded board-leveland/or system-level device, for example.

Although some embodiments have been described in reference to particularimplementations, other implementations are possible according to someembodiments. Additionally, the arrangement and/or order of circuitelements or other features illustrated in the drawings and/or describedherein need not be arranged in the particular way illustrated anddescribed. Many other arrangements are possible according to someembodiments.

In each system shown in a figure, the elements in some cases may eachhave a same reference number or a different reference number to suggestthat the elements represented could be different and/or similar.However, an element may be flexible enough to have differentimplementations and work with some or all of the systems shown ordescribed herein. The various elements shown in the figures may be thesame or different. Which one is referred to as a first element and whichis called a second element is arbitrary.

In the description and claims, the terms “coupled” and “connected,”along with their derivatives, may be used. It should be understood thatthese terms are not intended as synonyms for each other. Rather, inparticular embodiments, “connected” may be used to indicate that two ormore elements are in direct physical or electrical contact with eachother. “Coupled” may mean that two or more elements are in directphysical or electrical contact. However, “coupled” may also mean thattwo or more elements are not in direct contact with each other, but yetstill co-operate or interact with each other.

An algorithm is here, and generally, considered to be a self-consistentsequence of acts or operations leading to a desired result. Theseinclude physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, thoughnot necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical ormagnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined,compared, and otherwise manipulated. It has proven convenient at times,principally for reasons of common usage, to refer to these signals asbits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers or the like.It should be understood, however, that all of these and similar termsare to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and aremerely convenient labels applied to these quantities.

Some embodiments may be implemented in one or a combination of hardware,firmware, and software. Some embodiments may also be implemented asinstructions stored on a machine-readable medium, which may be read andexecuted by a computing platform to perform the operations describedherein. A machine-readable medium may include any mechanism for storingor transmitting information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., acomputer). For example, a machine-readable medium may include read onlymemory (ROM); random access memory (RAM); magnetic disk storage media;optical storage media; flash memory devices; electrical, optical,acoustical or other form of propagated signals (e.g., carrier waves,infrared signals, digital signals, the interfaces that transmit and/orreceive signals, etc.), and others.

An embodiment is an implementation or example of the inventions.Reference in the specification to “an embodiment,” “one embodiment,”“some embodiments,” or “other embodiments” means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiments is included in at least some embodiments, but notnecessarily all embodiments, of the inventions. The various appearances“an embodiment,” “one embodiment,” or “some embodiments” are notnecessarily all referring to the same embodiments.

Not all components, features, structures, characteristics, etc.described and illustrated herein need be included in a particularembodiment or embodiments. If the specification states a component,feature, structure, or characteristic “may”, “might”, “can” or “could”be included, for example, that particular component, feature, structure,or characteristic is not required to be included. If the specificationor claim refers to “a” or “an” element, that does not mean there is onlyone of the element. If the specification or claims refer to “anadditional” element, that does not preclude there being more than one ofthe additional element.

Although flow diagrams and/or state diagrams may have been used hereinto describe embodiments, the inventions are not limited to thosediagrams or to corresponding descriptions herein. For example, flow neednot move through each illustrated box or state, or in exactly the sameorder as illustrated and described herein.

The inventions are not restricted to the particular details listedherein. Indeed, those skilled in the art having the benefit of thisdisclosure will appreciate that many other variations from the foregoingdescription and drawings may be made within the scope of the presentinventions. Accordingly, it is the following claims including anyamendments thereto that define the scope of the inventions.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: storing in a device anencrypted indication of whether the device is an authentic device, theindication providing information regarding the legitimacy of the device.2. The method of claim 1, wherein the stored indication is to be used todetermine whether or not the device is a counterfeit device.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising determining whether the device isa counterfeit device in response to the stored indication.
 4. The methodof claim 1, wherein the authentic device is an authentic branded device.5. The method of claim 1, wherein the device includes an integratedcircuit to store the encrypted indication.
 6. The method of claim 1,wherein the device comprises an integrated circuit.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the indication is an indication of an intended use ofthe device.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the intended use includesone or more of an indication that the device is to be sold individuallyand an indication that the device is to be included in a brandedproduct.
 9. The method of claim 7, wherein the intended use includes oneor more of an indication that the device is to be included in aboard-level product and an indication that the device is to be soldindividually.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the indication isaddressable as a read-only location.
 11. The method of claim 1, whereinthe indication does not impact or control any other functional featuresof the device.
 12. The method of claim 1, further comprising: decryptingthe indication; and determining whether the device is a counterfeitdevice in response to the decrypted indication.
 13. The method of claim1, wherein the device includes a memory device to store the encryptedindication.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein the device is a memorydevice.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the memory device is aregister.
 16. An apparatus comprising: a device to store an encryptedindication of whether the device is an authentic device, the indicationproviding information regarding the legitimacy of the device.
 17. Theapparatus of claim 16, wherein the stored indication is to be used todetermine whether or not the device is a counterfeit device.
 18. Theapparatus of claim 16, the device further to help determine whether thedevice is a counterfeit device in response to the stored indication. 19.The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the authentic device is an authenticbranded device.
 20. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising anintegrated circuit to store the encrypted indication.
 21. The apparatusof claim 16, wherein the device comprises an integrated circuit.
 22. Theapparatus of claim 16, wherein the indication is an indication of anintended use of the device.
 23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein theintended use includes one or more of an indication that the device is tobe sold individually and an indication that the device is to be includedin a branded product.
 24. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein theintended use includes one or more of an indication that the device is tobe included in a board-level product and an indication that the deviceis to be sold individually.
 25. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein theindication is addressable as a read-only location.
 26. The apparatus ofclaim 16, wherein the indication does not impact or control any otherfunctional features of the device.
 27. The apparatus of claim 16,wherein the indication may be decrypted to help determine whether thedevice is a counterfeit device.
 28. The apparatus of claim 16, whereinthe device includes a memory device to store the encrypted indication.29. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the device is a memory device.30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the memory device is a register.